WASHINGTON, D.C.—In a speech celebrating the signing into law of the $1.3 trillion omnibus spending bill Friday, Republican President Donald Trump took a moment to clarify that by consistently repeating on the campaign trail that they would “defund Planned Parenthood,” he, as well as congressional Republicans, actually meant that they would “continue giving Planned Parenthood 500 million dollars in taxpayer funding each year.”

“‘We’re pro-life, give us a chance and we’ll defund Planned Parenthood, etc.’—we said these things a million times to get your votes. We did, it’s true,” Trump said. “I, your Republican president, as well as the Republicans who control Congress, want to make sure you understand that ‘defund’ can mean many things—for instance, it can mean ‘hand over half a billion dollars annually to the largest abortion provider in the country.’ It’s semantics, really.”

The president went on to assure conservative voters that when it comes to the 2018 midterm elections, and especially the 2020 presidential election, they can trust their Republican politicians “100%” when they say they will certainly defund Planned Parenthood.

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